I think this is exactly why many are complaining. The Order is a tech demo that shows what Last-Gen PC hardware can deliver *IF* the game is optimized specifically for 1 particular set of hardware. Think of what can be achieved if a game is specifically optimized and design for GTX 980/970 R9 290X/290. Of course nobody will do that because sales. Seen Zelda U's trailer? Even the Wii U's hardware is capable something like that if specially optimized. It becomes even easier if it were a level by level stage by stage interactive cinematic movie.
Many are comparing TW3 to Skyrim with 4K texture mods or even TW2... Firstly, my personal preference. I dont look overdone textures. Texture that are too sharp and bright screams "fake", its especially painful to watch if they look out of place and dont blend well. I much prefer an overall feel that blends together. It is not really a fair comparison as screenshots dont really do TW3 justice - TW3 looks awesome when you are standing in a middle of the forest and the wind is howling. Everything just comes to live and it is not just another pretty picture.
Does making this game for consoles affected the graphics of TW3. I would agree that it does. Especially since even on 1440p I am only using like 4GB of system RAM and 1.5GB VRAM... so there is definitely room for improvement. Does it look ugly because of this? No.
As for the 2013 E3 trailer... I dont really feel that huge a difference. Yes, some texture seems to be different and some of the camera angle showed in that trailer is totally different from the camera angle we have now. Also it mixed game footage, awesome camera angle footage with CG footage to create a sense of awesomeness that I would say .... mislead and misguided the expectation of many.
Even without consoles, we really should not be expecting a huge leap in graphics for PCs. Just look at the new graphic cards of the pass few years. They no longer offer that huge a performance leap like they did a decade ago. Basically we are getting more cores, more power consumption (except maxwell), more cards SLI/Crossfire. Unless... someone is crazy enough to create games specifically optimized for 5-10% of the PC market.
